


A Busted T.V. and a Broken Machine

by Bylionsmane_99



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: ...until you have to, Angst, Anxiety for all, Be patient, Black isn't a brat in this one, Blue is smarter than he lets on, Burgerpants is slightly losing it, But She'll Figure It Out, Cash has chaotic energy, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Depression, Edge will always be a tsundere, F/M, Female Reader, Fluff, He's mean, I'm sorry I don't know how to tag, Just don't worry about it, Mauve is just an angry psycho bean, Multi, Mutt is a sweet soft boi, Nightmares, Nonbinary Frisk (Undertale), Other tags will be added and removed, Papyrus kinda remembers resets, Pls let me know if I need to change anything, Reader Is Not Chara (Undertale), Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Reader is just winging it, Reader will gradually meet the boys, Reader-Insert, Red will always be the perv, Reverse Harem, Romance, Sans has fun picking on you, Selectively Mute Frisk (Undertale), Slow Burn, Stretch is a chill boi, author's first fic, but author did, but he has a lot on his plate too, but he's kinda overprotective, but he's still baby, but he's still positive, but the man has a problem with the sun, cause these bois have been through a bit, he didn't ask for this, he's ready for a vacation already, internally, other than hotdogs, reader is kinda feisty, she has no idea what she's doing, until he gets stuck with babysitting the others, until he's not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:41:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25226242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bylionsmane_99/pseuds/Bylionsmane_99
Summary: (To be read like an infomercial)New job, new apartment, and new n̶i̶g̶h̶t̶m̶a̶r̶e̶s̶ Life experiences (Yay)!Your mom has always told you that life has a couple of bumps along the way.Like breaking your T.V. when you moved or gaining a co-worker who boasts he's cut a human in two before (Wow fabulous)!But wait, there's more!Like,• Getting scammed!• Dealing with overprotective brothers!• Feeling like something is watching. Your. Every. Move!And many more!But not to worry! Life isn't anything but hardships and dealing with moody skeletons.But you'll just have to figure that out on your own (Amazing)!-----------I don't know how to write summaries...
Relationships: Alphys/Undyne (Undertale), Asgore Dreemurr/Toriel, Papyrus (Undertale)/Reader, Sans (Undertale)/Reader
Comments: 11
Kudos: 44





	1. Prologue

Beep Beep Beep Bee- SLam!

You nuzzle into the pillow more, silently asking it to take you back to dreamland. You try to wrap the blanket around you but find it has tangled around your limbs from your nightly dance with sleep. Attempting to yank them to the side to snuggle in, you find yourself tumbling out of bed. You don't hear the loud thud from the impact but rather feel the dull pain from your attempts to get back to sleep.

Glaring at the offending blankets, you get up. You stagger off to your bed and plop down. Looking at the blank walls and boxes, you know you have your work cut out. You moved in yesterday, but it seems everything that could go wrong... went wrong. 

Before you even moved into the apartment, your jeans had somehow torn in the dryer. Along with it, $60 that you forgot were in said jeans. Then the moving truck showed up an hour late, and their place of business was only 20 minutes away. Finally, things got up and running, you made it to your new apartment. It seemed it would be smooth sailing from there on out, but you were wrong. It was the last box, and it was the dishes. You caught your foot on the previous step up, and you dropped the box. The broken pieces didn't come out of the box; luckily, you only scraped your forearms, but it was still disappointing...

Sighing, you grab your clothes from the closet and head out of your bedroom to the bathroom. Looking into the mirror, you give yourself a grin. You're just trying to cheer yourself up since today is a new day, and you have a new job to look forward to. Undressing, you hop into the shower, hoping it'll wash away yesterday's bad luck.

••••••

You walk out of the bathroom to the kitchen, feeling refreshed after your shower. Only to have your stomach yell at you for food. Grumbling, you head to the bottom cabinets to look for your pans. You have more than enough time to cook breakfast since you don't have to work till 3. Maybe, you'll even hook up the T.V. and watch some shows...

Before you can look into the bottom cabinet, your phone rings. It seems like your plans (and food) will have to wait a bit. Looking at the I.D., you immediately answer before it can ring a third time.

"Hello?"

"(Y/n)! How does the new house feel? Did you unpack anything yet? Did you greet any new neighbors? How about that jo-"

"Mom!" You interrupt her, cutting through her barrage of questions.

Inhaling, you reply, "Well. The house feels empty at the moment, but that's because I went straight to bed. And because of that, I didn't unpack... or greet the neighbors..." You don't do well with interacting with others. You just need more practice with socializing in general. You avoided interacting with your neighbors by going to bed early last night. It was only 9 at night.

"...Well yeah, I expected that... I'm sorry, hon. I'm just excited for you because this such a big step for you and-and I just want you to be comfortable, and it's going to be so weird without you here and," She pauses and takes a breath. "Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I? I just want this to go well for you and that your father and I are so proud of you."

You grin, "Thank you, mom, but I'm going to be fine, I promise." You take a small pause, seemingly remembering something.

"Before I left, I heard from dad that you guys got new tenants recently since the previous ones decided to... mess up the place." You frown, thinking back to how your parents found the house abandoned and dirty a few months back. You had helped them clean it up and made sure everything was in proper order for new tenants to eventually move in.

"Yes, we did! The new tenants are just wonderful! They even made spaghetti!!" Your mother praised.

"Wow, mom, that sounds great.....”

ChChshshhhhhh static. Again. “Hmm... I guess this means there is no more tape. I just want to watch. I didn't know it would end so soon." He sighs, the apartment crumbling around him, and debris falling, acting as if it would hit him. He waits until the image fades away until he is left with nothing but the Void. 

"They finally got tired..." He says to himself, clearly displeased. It is intriguing this time, considering it isn't a view from a M̷̡͈̪͙͕̦͓̣̹̠̽̍̐̿͆̈̚ơ̸̡͖̤͚̮̮͈̠̼̑̍̎͌͝n̷̞̩̞͓̬͌̾ͅͅś̴̡̧͔̺͓̤̟̦̳̟͆̂͠͠ţ̶̥̣̮̮̤͈̑͂̅̀̑̏͘e̴̼͔̙̙͕̎̌̀͐̈̾ṝ̵̢̧̙̹̗͖͚̬̋̔͂̇͂̉͘͜͝.

He shifts in his spot. He doesn't know if he was on the ground or the ceiling. He has been here for so long he can't recall. Really, there is nothing of directions in this space (place?). He can walk further into it (would it bring him closer to the exit?), or he could just stay where he was. It doesn't matter. He's just trapped. Like he's always been.

He couldn't sleep. He has tried. All he has ever been allowed to do is observe. To see from the eyes of other M̷̡͈̪͙͕̦͓̣̹̠̽̍̐̿͆̈̚ơ̸̡͖̤͚̮̮͈̠̼̑̍̎͌͝n̷̞̩̞͓̬͌̾ͅͅś̴̡̧͔̺͓̤̟̦̳̟͆̂͠͠ţ̶̥̣̮̮̤͈̑͂̅̀̑̏͘e̴̼͔̙̙͕̎̌̀͐̈̾ṝ̵̢̧̙̹̗͖͚̬̋̔͂̇͂̉͘͜͝ş̸̢̙͓̘̠̝̞͉̪̈́̃. A new M̷̡͈̪͙͕̦͓̣̹̠̽̍̐̿͆̈̚ơ̸̡͖̤͚̮̮͈̠̼̑̍̎͌͝n̷̞̩̞͓̬͌̾ͅͅś̴̡̧͔̺͓̤̟̦̳̟͆̂͠͠ţ̶̥̣̮̮̤͈̑͂̅̀̑̏͘e̴̼͔̙̙͕̎̌̀͐̈̾ṝ̵̢̧̙̹̗͖͚̬̋̔͂̇͂̉͘͜͝ for each reset... and they never last very long. He always witnesses the carnage, the backstabbing, and the empty promises. To watch what his mistakes have done and watch (̵͎̯̱̹̼̬̠̥́͊̌́ʀ̵͇̫͎͓̟̜͓̣̔̒͗͑̌̾̆͠ᴇ̶̨̛̞̼͕̅̑̊̍̍̌͋ᴅ̸͇̔͐͗͂ͅᴀ̶̨̖̝̣͖̖̑͊͒͆͑͠ᴄ̸̯̓̒͝ᴛ̸͉̽̍̅̄̐̄̋͆͝ᴇ̵̺̽̽͐̑̈ᴅ̴̡̲͕̖̟͍̗̈́͐̕͝͠)̸͈̱̯̣̙̾͛̏͝͝'s HoPe slowly fade.

Of all the fantasies he wished to have, he has nothing but this. The black Void... That only held nothing but sorrow and twisted dreams, of hopes that could've been and nightmares that were soft and lovingly inviting. The lack of motivation and feelings scare him, but he can do nothing with them right now. The lack of motivation and feelings scare him, but he can do nothing with them right now... Maybe he wasn't even (̵͎̯̱̹̼̬̠̥́͊̌́ʀ̵͇̫͎͓̟̜͓̣̔̒͗͑̌̾̆͠ᴇ̶̨̛̞̼͕̅̑̊̍̍̌͋ᴅ̸͇̔͐͗͂ͅᴀ̶̨̖̝̣͖̖̑͊͒͆͑͠ᴄ̸̯̓̒͝ᴛ̸͉̽̍̅̄̐̄̋͆͝ᴇ̵̺̽̽͐̑̈ᴅ̴̡̲͕̖̟͍̗̈́͐̕͝͠)̸͈̱̯̣̙̾͛̏͝͝ anymore then. Perhaps he is just a broken T.V., forced to play the same thing repeatedly, only to watch the people watching him wonder where the sound is coming from (except for one... he knew where he might be).

But Alas, he floats. Watching events unfurl from different views and knowing there is nothing he can do to stop it. Doomed to relive his past mistakes and wishing he could replay those moments differently while he slowly lost more of himself. 

...

Interesting... Very interesting... he muses as he sees something brighter than the Void he's in. Perhaps he can finish viewing it after all...

He grins, it also appears that he may view without being contained to a _single_ set of eyes. It looks like he's gained more channels.

There might be something new on this old T.V. after all.

And it seems new viewers will be taking their seats too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, so that was my first fanfic ever... or, well, the beginning of it at least.  
> And, if you can't tell (probably can but still), I don't write a lot.  
> If you have any critiques, that would be wonderful! I don't have a set plan on when I'll update, but hopefully, it'll be soon.  
> Thank you for reading!


	2. Again?

You're in a purple field, the grain... Wait, they're flowers... but they have thorns. You try to pick one anyway... it doesn't hurt you... You pick another one, your mind telling you it will make a lovely bouquet. You instantly drop the flower to the ground. This time you bleed. You look at it in shock, forgetting that it's just a flower. It will always be a flower. You look up at the sky to shout something, only to see that, it too, is purple. You look to a tree, it's purple also. Everywhere you look, purple, and then you feel a splash. You feel like the color is suffocating you. You are suffocating. Drowning on... something. You weren't paying attention. Flailing arms and legs, struggling to make it to the surface. The strain on your lungs burns like a hot wound festering, eating until it was nothing. You break through the surface, seeing you are in a pool surrounded by black. Breathing heavily, you climb out of it. You were drowning on water, nothing more. You look at the pool, and it is once again calm. You look to the sky again, only to be met with black.

You wake up, your blankets tangled around your form. Somehow during the night, you wrestled them to wrap around your face. You yank the sheets away from you and tumble out of bed. Glancing down at your nightclothes, you find them soaked with sweat. 

Rubbing your face, you attempt to gather your thoughts. You don't remember the dream, no, the nightmare anymore — just the feeling of dread. You look down at your shaking hands, you hadn't had a nightmare scare you like that in a while. It made you anxious... but-but it was probably the stress of the move... and that you were in a new place... Yeah, that's it... The plain walls alone made it hard to think... But lucky you, you have the rest of the apartment covered with the mountain of yet-to-be-unpacked boxes. You chuckle nervously, yay, you thought.

You grab some clothes and make your way to the bathroom. The feeling still paws at you, but you reason with yourself that it was the move. It was hectic, after all. Letting the shower run over you, you give yourself a small, wary smile. You are finally doing things, at least. On your own! Kinda... But that's beside the point, you got a new job and an apartment! And hopefully, the rest of today will be better than yesterday. You grin, it  ** will ** be better.

•••••

You walk out of the bathroom to the kitchen with newfound confidence.  While your morning did start out weird, it doesn't mean your day has to be. And you'll kick it off with breakfast! Hell might even install the T.V. too! You go to the bottom cabinets to search for your pans. Maybe you'll be a tad fancy and make an omel-  Wow... you really are an airhead sometimes, staring into the empty cabinet. You forgot to unpack the pans, and if you recall correctly, your past self was an airhead too. Like, not writing on the box that held the pots and pans. Because it was the last one, so you decided to just chuck it into your car... But come to find out your mom did the same thing with FOUR other boxes... You sigh, guess the omelet and bacon are out the window today, and dry cereal is in your future.

You start to look for the cereal box until your phone rings louder than your growling stomach. It seems like fate didn't want you to eat today, but it was your mom, so of course, you answer. 

"Hello?"

"(Y/n)! How does the new house feel? Did you unpack anything yet? Did you greet any new neighbors? How about that jo-"

"Ma!" You interrupt her, cutting through her barrage of questions.

Inhaling, you reply, "Well. The house feels empty at the moment, but that's because I went straight to bed. And because of that, I didn't unpack... or greet the neighbors..." Plus, you don't really do well with talking with others. It was probably best for both parties. You avoid interacting with your neighbors, and your neighbors didn't have to deal with your awkward ass... hmmm weird.

"...Well yeah, I expected that... I'm sorry, hon. I'm just excited for you because this such a big step for you and-and I just want you to be comfortable, and it's going to be so weird without you here and," She paused and took a breath. "Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I? I just want this to go well for you and that your father and I are so proud of you."

"Thank you, mom, but I'm going to be fine, I promise," You say, grinning nervously. Why does it feel like you've had this conversation before...? You ask the question you meant to ask, to test this strange sense of major déjà vu.

"Umm... before I left, I heard from dad that you guys got new tenants recently since the previous ones decided to... mess up the place." You frown, thinking back to how your parents found the house abandoned and wrecked a few months ago. It took them a while to clean up and make sure everything was in proper order. Especially since the previous tenants never cleaned for the two years, they lived there. Your parents don't need to de-

"Yes, we did! The new tenants are just wonderful! They even made spaghetti!!" Your mother's praise for the tenants slice through your thoughts. Wow... maybe you heard her say this in a dream before?

"Aww, mom, they sound sweet, bu-"

"Oh!! And they're monsters!" Mom exclaims.

"...Oh cool, what type of monsters are they?" You wonder. You should leave the feeling alone. Déjà vu is always weird to you anyways. Thinking back to what your mom said, the monsters are in good hands, considering their landlords are your parents. Your family has supported monsters since they first came out of Mt. Ebott about four years ago. Which was crazy in itself but crazier enough, was the one who broke the seal that kept them trapped in the mountain. A  **_ child _ ** broke the seal, and they look to be eight or nine as well.

The government didn't take kindly to the newly surfaced species and made them stay on the mountain until further investigation. The public didn't even find out until weeks later about the monsters, which caused an outcry. People wanted to put them back in the mountain or just wipe them out entirely, and people like your family wanted to learn more about them and help. All the while, monsters were forced to stay on the mountain while the royals tried to negotiate terms with the government. It was, in short, a mess and wasn't resolved until three years later. The government was finally persuaded by the benefits of magic (and gold) that could help our species as a whole.

When they could leave the mountain, every monster was to gain citizenship and could start businesses or get jobs. When it came out to the public, people were divided. Some wanted them to go back to the mountain, and people like your family wanted to assist the monsters in any way they could. And the monsters themselves stuck in the middle.

It's been a year since the monsters gained their rights, but there were still stru-

"N... Hon. Hon... Honey! (Y/n)! Did you hear what I said?!?" Your mom fretted.

...oops... you kinda zoned out on that, didn't you...

"S-Sorry mom...just kinda, ya know, got lost in thought. Could you repeat that please?" You say sheepishly. You really need to get that in check...it might get you in trouble one day.

"...As I was saying, honey, our tenants are skeletons. Isn't that exciting? And they are. Just. DARLING!" She gushed. "I think I should invite them over one day and have you meet them. I think you would like them."

"Yeah... Um, may-"

"My dearest girl..."

wha- 

"You have to remember, whatever lays outside the door is a gift for the soul. So it may be filled with comfort and happiness," She pauses for dramatic effect. "For you, one day may know... companionship."

Beep.

...

You stare at the home screen of your phone.

What. The. *ᶠᵘᶜᵏ*. You stare at the phone a bit longer, seemingly waiting for it to answer you. Your mom can be a bit weird sometimes, but that only happens when... wait. She didn't.

Suddenly, there is a knock on your door. You rush to answer, for it felt like fate was knocking. You throw open the door, excitement racing through your veins. A twinge in your chest telling you... It is your soulmate.

A welcome home gift basket filled to the brim with junk food and the *good* cheese (the type that was still soft but didn't come out of a can) and the *good* crackers (they were seasoned). Oh, how your mother was right! Cackling clutching it to your chest (dismissing the bug-eyed stare from the departing delivery monster), you close the door and rush to the table. She knew you hadn't eaten somehow, and you are grateful for that mom sense...  That, or she just did this ahead of time, and it was a welcome home basket, and she didn't know you are starving... Whatever.

Maybe fate isn't so cruel after all. Now you should probably look for your T.V. to celebrate this small bounty.

...

It took two hours. You finally found your T.V., but it took two hours... How the hell did looking for a T.V. in  ** a small apartment ** , take you  ** two ** .  ** Hours ** . You're sure that you placed it into your *empty* bedroom closet. But you found it in the  _ SMALL  _ hallway closet. That, and you're sure the last time you saw it, it didn't have a large Fucking crack in it. You were even the one who moved it!! You drop to your knees, how - how did it get broken?? You groan, it was a good thing that your mom got you the junk food, you'll eat it to mourn the loss of your T.V... But you're pretty sure it wasn't an accident... Someone murdered your T.V., and you hope to get justice (or at least get it fixed).

Until then, you should probably get ready for work. Oh, and actually eat something before you leave... Hopefully, your jo- actually, you aren't even going to finish that sentence. It seems like the bad luck from yesterday might've carried over...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heh... Yeah, it's going to take some time because I have no idea how to pace... I tried making this one longer, but it just ended up in splitting it in two because it didn't... flow? I don't know, but I'll try to make the next one longer, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.  
> As always, please tell me what I can fix to improve the story and chapter.


	3. Well, work is... umm... something

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You finally make it to work!

Maps. On.

Music. Loud!

Shades. Not yet acquired but you'll buy them... eventually...

The afternoon sun is shining down, making you feel as upbeat as your playlist, boosting your mood while you wait in traffic. Tapping along to the song, It's a good thing you left early. You might've keeled over if you were late on your first day of work. The upside to getting stuck in bumper to bumper traffic is that you get to look around and just... take it in. Driving through Ebott City is exciting. The murmur of life sings throughout the city, monsters and people alike hurrying around, tending to daily errands or working. The stores and restaurants around you look like fun, so many to eventually visit, but so little time. A particular shop catches your eye...Muffet's...? Yeah, that's what it says. It looks, as your mother would say, charming, with the pastel purple color scheme. You can see all the pastries in the window from your car... You definitely have to visit the little shop soon.

You force your eyes away from the cute little bakery as the light turns green. It seems that your job should be around here. Maybe a few more lights before you reach it. This job is... really important to you. It's technically your first job, not counting working for your parents to check in and work on the houses they have up for rent. You tried applying to jobs here and there, but none of them would take you... This might be from the lack of experience you have, but you thought at least one would accept you. Shaking your head to dislodge the thoughts, you turn the music up a bit more. You have a real job now (even though it might be because you're human). All you have to do is focus on getting to work; hopefully, the light doesn't change because that will cut it pretty close... As if hearing your mental comment, the light in front of you quickly turns yellow, and you slow down. And of course, it's red...great.

Stopping at the light, you glance at the cars around. Rhythmically head-bopping to your music and thoughts, beginning to daydream about the bakery and what they might sell. You stop mid-bop, your look faltering when you see a skeleton in a red convertible next to you. Before you can avert your gaze, they seem to catch your eyes, you expect them to just go back to waiting for the light while you die of embarrassment for getting caught staring, but they don't. Instead, they give you a big grin and an enthusiastic wave. Like an old computer, you stall until your face flushes, who would just wave to a complete stranger?! You eventually give them a small awkward smile and wave back to be polite. They laugh loud enough that you hear it through your window and music (Nyeh heh heh...heh?). The moment ends when the light changes and the skeleton zooms away (all within the speed limits of course). You turn your music up once more to drown your overthinking brain in. Gripping the steering wheel, you hope that you didn't seem rude... that would make you feel terrible...

•••••

You parallel park into the spot that says "Bleak Employees." Sounds kinda mean, but you're sure that isn't intentional. It's run by monsters after all. The monster that owns the building is none other than the rambunctious monster celebrity, Mettaton. Which is surprising considering how calm and relaxing the store is. BleakBeats is anything but that, bleak, it is one of the most popular stores/ café in Ebott. People like to say that if Lofi was a place, it would most likely be BleakBeats.

Entering the shop, you're greeted with "spooky" beats and the mellow atmosphere the place seems to radiate. The neutral color scheme gives it a modern look while the bubble lights around are in star shapes, ranging from size and color. There is a counter for the store section straight ahead, but you don't work there. You turn right and continue to walk along the various rows, lined with anything a music lover could dream of. The rows display music, headphones, and different instruments. You stop when the store area meets the café, this is your job, tucked away inside the store.

It didn't seem busy at the moment, so you stand there, glancing around a bit more. The café itself was small, keeping to the theme of feeling cozy. A large window to your right allows you to see the street and lets the afternoon sunshine through, adding to the soft feel. Its colors are made up of muted blue and grey walls. The tiles on the floor are pastel pink (the not-so-subtle hint that Mettaton made it). There are some tables scattered about and... a slouched, tense-looking cat monster. Huh, that must be one of your co-workers... Why would he be so tense in a place like this? Maybe he's having a lousy day..? You begin to walk up to him, the best friendly smile you can muster on your face.

Before you can say anything, the cat monster immediately stands up straight, "Welcome to MTT-Brand BleakBeats Café, the best place to soothe your spirits," he grits out through his customer-service smile. "Would you like to try our specialty today? It's the Blooky shake, it's so good that you'll go from Boo-hoo to booyah."

You internally cringe at that one. That just... hurt, but you keep face, "Hi, I'm (Y/n). I'm your new hire. I was emailed to come in this morning to start work today. I'm supposed to meet the manager. Do you know who that is..." Perfect, just like you rehearsed. You give yourself an internal pat on the back while squinting at his name tag, "Burger...Pants?"

Burgerpants sighs exaggeratedly, pinching the bridge of his nose. When he composes himself, his face eases into that of "I'm dying internally" type of smile. 

"So you're the new employee, huh," He says disgruntledly, his arms slowly coming to rest upon the counter. "If that's the case, I'm the manager. Just come around the counter, and we'll get an apron and hat for you."

"Oh, um, ok." You say as you follow him to the back.

"Hey, Aaron, you have to handle the front for a bit. I gotta show the newbie," he shudders. "the training video." 

A muscular horsefish monster flip flops towards the front, but not without sadly shaking his head at you and flexing. Alrighty then... your concern is now growing.

The backroom doesn't have any color, unlike the rest of the store. The room holds a table and a few chairs around it. Some lockers line the wall and what you can only assume to be a medium-sized box. Other than those few items, there isn't much else. Burgerpants starts to look through the box, his arms reaching way past where the bottom of the box should be. You'll chalk that up to magic, you think, as he pulls out a light-blue apron and hat for you. He hands them to you and then yanks out an old box T.V. with a VCR. You put on the apron and hat while Burgerpants continues to look for what you assume is the tape for the VCR (mind you very reluctantly but nonetheless, searching). You sit down at the table patiently. Wondering if you should start small talk until he finds the tape and begins to put it in only to hesitate. You sit there, concerned. What could be so bad that the manager is .....scared? You hope he doesn't leave you alone for whatever this "training video" might be.

Your hope disappears as quickly as Burgerpants leaves, the video starts. The lights flick off, and it's just you and the T.V. What... have you gotten yourself into?? You jump when the MTT music starts blaring from the T.V., and you begin to wonder if this was the best choice in a job. The title card appears and reads  _ C̶o̶o̶k̶i̶n̶g̶ Training with the K̶i̶l̶l̶e̶r̶ Friendly Robot  _ (why wouldn't they just make another title?). Mettaton's face shows up in the BleakBeats uniform, but a glammed-up version. It's covered with glitter and sequins on both the apron and hat while wearing blue knee-high boots. You almost miss them, but a little ghost floats next to him, they seem slightly uncomfortable.

Mettaton strikes a pose while holding (?) the ghost, "WELCOME! To BleakBeats!" He hits another pose to begin his next sentence. The ghost slowly floats away from his reach but is still in the frame. 

"Today marks your first day working, so that means you need some... training~." He gives the camera a dashing smile as it zooms in for a close-up. "But, before we begin, I must let you know some rules first." A pull-down screen tumbles down behind him, and the camera zooms out to display them both in the frame. The little ghost floats over to the opposite side of the screen. They look really familiar, but you can't place them at the moment.

Mettaton taps the screen with a pointer (wait, was that his finger?) and faces the camera with a stern look. 

"Number one: You are not permitted to embarrass the company, Bloo- I mean, Napstablook, or yourself. Remember, you are a part of BleakBeats now, new employee." That's it! You were still trying to place the ghost until the name Mettaton says hits you, that's who the ghost is, Napstablook! He's an up and coming D.J., but no one's really seen his face because, at his concerts, it's just an empty DJ booth. You can guess why now. 

Your thoughts are interrupted by the next rule, "Number two: The customer is always right. No. Matter. What. Just like me! Finally, Number three is especially important; make sure you greet all the customers with a smile. Always." His stern look changes back to his charming smile while he pulls the screen down, and it clatters back up. 

He shuts his eyes while posing dramatically, slowly fluttering them open (you assume both since you can only see one), "Remember these rules, my darling employee, and make sure you hold your other co-workers to my standards, as well."

Mettaton begins to talk about the job's specifics and gives a demonstration of each menu item while Napstablook assists (as best as a ghost can). After what felt like hours of instruction, Mettaton mumbles something back to the small ghost, who looks very transparent at the moment. Napstablook quickly glances at the camera and then floats until he is halfway off the frame. 

Mettaton looks over at him encouragingly but plays it off with a smile at the camera. 

"ᵀʰᵃⁿᵏ ʸᵒᵘ ᶠᵒʳ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵘᵖᵖᵒʳᵗ ᵃⁿᵈ ʷᵉ ʰᵒᵖᵉ... ʸᵒᵘ ᵉⁿʲᵒʸ ʷᵒʳᵏⁱⁿᵍ..." Napstablook mumbles.

Mettaton poses again, and Napstablook floats over next to him, 

"AT BLEAKBEATS!~."

"ᴬᵗ ᴮˡᵉᵃᵏᴮᵉᵃᵗˢ..."

He stops and gazes over to the side, looking like he's listening to someone. His eye goes slightly wide and quickly turns back to the camera, "Oh! And darling~, please do not forget to do your best!" He finishes with a wink.

Beep

The lights automatically turn back on when the tape is done playing. That was... certainly something. You get up carefully because one of your legs fell asleep, and you want to avoid falling on your ass today. You walk to the door only to have your heart jump in your chest as Burgerpants slams open the door equally startled.

"You trying to give me a heart attack, newbie!?" He gasps, one of his hands clutching his shirt while the other grips the doorway dramatically.

You knit your eyebrows together and give him a wary smile, "You're the one bursting through doors!" 

He drags his hand down his face, "I was coming to get you because I heard that star's forsaken tape end."

You both kinda just stand there awkwardly. 

He turns and waves for you to follow, "That doesn't matter anymore, newbie! We gotta get back to the front, so let's get out of here. I rather not be in this backroom unless it's my break (Which I'm not really allowed to have, but it gives me hope)."

You continue to walk behind him as the rules replay in your mind... Are you really suppose to follow them to a T? What if the customer is in the wrong...? You never really had to deal with these rules before when working with your parents...

"Um, Burgerpants-"

"Bp."

He opens the door, and you follow him back out to the front, "What?"

"Just call me Bp. It's shorter that way, and I don't like to relive my past trauma when hearing it." He chuckles dryly.

...

"Past trauma? Wha-"

Unfortunately, you don't get another word in when the liveliness of the café hits you in the face. Literally. A bobbin' cake pop hits you square in the forehead. Bp pats you on the shoulder to comfort? Looking up, you realize he's already sporting his customer service smile. He was giving you a pity pat! Before you can say anything else, he is fast walking for the counter. You pick up the cake pop and toss it in the trash. You look out and see the long line of people and monsters. Well, time to get in some hands-on training. And maybe some dodging too, that kid looks like he's ready to throw his shake next...

•••••

The stream of customers slowly starts to die down. You thought for sure the job would be easy considering that you're only working evenings, but apparently, you forgot that five o'clock rush is a thing. Luckily, it's almost the end of your shift, but you still have customers to serve. You speed by Burgerpants, umm Bp, with a cupholder of Blooky shakes and a bag filled with boppin' cake pops. You hand them off to Aaron and quickly go to the next order. Besides how busy it was earlier, your training is going pretty well. Bp has pointed out a few things that you can do to make the menu items faster, but honestly, some of the things he says sound physically impossible for a human to do. Especially for you who can barely handle normal human things like walking up the stairs with a box of dishes. You still attempt these feats, Other than that, BP turns out to be a good manager. Though, you are concerned about his customer service face getting more manic throughout the shift (What the hell is "thanksy"??).

It's time to head home before you know it, Aaron already left earlier while Bp looks like he isn't anytime soon. You already put your hat and apron away in your locker as the night shift employees start to arrive as you walk to the front. A haze of fur and claws blur pass you. You look back at Bp and make a decision, "Bye, Bp. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya, newbie. You did well today. Also, you don't have to take the rules so seriously as long as you don't tattle, I sure as hell won't (since Mettaton only comes to see the café at least once a month and checks in once a week)." He says with an overwrought grin.

You give him a small smile and make your way outside. The cool night breeze blows gently, bringing a sense of calm to the bustling city. You feel proud of yourself. All in all, today was great. Your job went swimmingly, and you feel like you can make a friend at least. Or try to. Bp is a bit... overworked, but he seems nice. Hopefully, you'll get to know him better. You get into your car and head home. It's only 7pm, and you don't plan on going to bed just yet. You'll probably unpack a bit (and find those pans). 

Oh, maybe you should call Allison and tell her about your day. She's probably wondering how you've been during her week-long vacation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heck yeah! I did it! I made it longer, and we have Bp now! All I have to say is I'm sorry, Bp, for putting you through this but you know as an actor, the show must go on! And this ball feels like it's finally rolling so yay!  
> Thank you all for reading my story, and as always, give me any feedback to improve it!

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, so that was my first fanfic ever... or, well, the beginning of it at least.   
> And, if you can't tell (probably can but still), I don't write a lot.  
> If you have any critiques, that would be wonderful! I don't have a set plan on when I'll update, but hopefully, it'll be soon.  
> Thank you for reading!


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